I have watched videos to help me learn and I notice that I keep my thread a lot further down on the needle because I'm afraid it will pop off if I move it up. I am also having a hard time with casting off but am practicing that. Is this just a beginner thing or are there any tips anyone can offer to help?

Thank you in advance.

I am working on very short stitches (Usually 10-20 for practice so that could be the issue but want to make sure.)

Just keep knitting. Having a stitch fall off the tip of the needle isn't so horrible. You can pick it up again. Just put the tip of the needle into it. Confidence comes with putting stitches back on the needle and learning to make corrections. The free videos here (button at the top of the page) show how to fix things. You might find the demo of a small project video helpful. The main thing is, just keep at it and before long you'll wonder what you were so worried about. At least that's how it was for me.

__________________~ GG
Happiness is catching that dropped stitch while it's still fixable..

The Following User Says Thank You to GrumpyGramma For This Useful Post:

New knitters have heard about dropped stitches so they're terrified that one will, so they tend to knit too tight and keep them away from the tips. The truth is, they don't drop and run that easily, so if one falls off you would just put it back on. It won't run down unless you pull on the knitting or the stitch. The videos on the Tips page show how to fix mistakes, including a dropped one that you don't see and put back on but keep knitting. You could practice doing that on your samples then you'll have more confidence by knowing you're able to fix problems.

It all sounds normal for a new knitter. As you become more comfortable you'll relax a bit. And dropping a stitch is a pain, but we all do it, even experienced knitters, so slide your stitches up the needle a bit. Just keep practicing.

__________________
Jan

When asking questions ALWAYS post the name and a link for the pattern if you have it.

I am fairly new to knitting too, and I must say i was terrified of dropping stitches too. Until it happened a few times and I had no trouble at all picking them up. Like others have said on this forum: if you relax, just enjoy what you are doing and don't worry too much, everything works out fine. If not, you can always take everything out and start over ;-)